


From The Ashes

by SeekerFinder



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Healing, M/M, Mild Gore, There is some fluffy moments, Tiso gets a reality check, eventually
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-10-01
Packaged: 2020-10-28 05:40:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20773448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeekerFinder/pseuds/SeekerFinder
Summary: Tiso ends up barely surviving his ordeal at the Colosseum of fools. After a a stranger risks his life to save the fallen warrior, Tiso will have to decide if he chooses life or glory.





	1. Prologue

You would think they would treat a fallen warrior with some kind of respect, or at least have the common decency to assure they were dead before just throwing them to the forgotten whispers of kingdoms edge.

Tiso, unlike most who left the Colosseum this way. Was alive. Thought he was clinging to that strand of life. Despite. His breaths were slow and with each one he pulled more ash into his lungs. He gently coughs and weakly uses his hood to cover his mouth. His hands shook as he grasped onto the cloth in front of his mouth.

He knew he had to keep awake. Even the through of his folly in the Colosseum was drowned out by the prospect of surviving. He moves himself to a wall of the cliff he was thrown from. 

He struggles to sit up. His hand moves the cloth from his mouth to aid in propping himself up.

"Come on..." he hissed, finally pressing his back to the cliff face.

As he sat he took a few breaths. Deeper breaths then the shallow ones he started with. 

It was then he realized no one would come for him. That realization hit him hard. Seeing as he couldn't move or call for help. If he did call it would attract the infected, Sealing his fate. If he didn't try to alert someone, the same thing would happen. Only slower. 

Tiso sighs and closes his eyes. His mind slowly trying to grasp what happened that landed him here. As he did close his eyes he felt the intense urge to sleep. To drift off.

He fought back but to no avail. Soon he lays, propped up against the cliff face. 

Unconscious, Alive, and for the first time in his life, scared.


	2. Broken Mask

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Tiso wakes up in a strange place he is confronted by not only a stranger but also the wounds he now bares.

Drip...Drip...Drip.

The distant sound of rain was what Tiso first woke up to. The soft dripping of a room riddled with leaks. As his eyes slowly open he begins to slowly look around though it soon was interrupted by panic. 

He quickly sat up and looked at his surroundings. He was in a room, the window at the other end of the room was gently illuminated by a lumafly lantern that sat at one end of the window sill.

The room seemed to have old broken furniture, covered by white sheets as to preserve it. Though the furniture looked drenched by the leaks that were in the ceiling. It didn't take a genius to tell he was in the city of tears.

Tiso was sitting on a small bundle of dry white and gray sheets. A dark blue blanket covered him. He lifts the blanket enough to see that his wounds were all tended and wrapped with care. 

It deeply confused the warrior, he thought once he let his eyes close that his fate was sealed. He shook his head before glancing around. His eyes then fall upon his shield that lay on a sheet covered table across the room.

He drew a deep breath before shaking his head. “Whoever brought me here...must have wanted to save me…” his voice echoes in the empty room “I shouldn't-” Tiso snaps to attention as he hears the door slowly glide open.

In strides a bug. Holding a small bundle of cloth in one hand. At his waist there was a nail, one that seemed a bit too small for him. His had a blue bandanna wrapped over his head. 

His mask was broken on one side. A clear crack over the left eye. It seemed to also be in line with a scar that the white mask just hardly covered. 

The bug stood in the doorway for a moment, looking down at Tiso. A sigh came from him before closing the door. In a soft voice he began to speak.

“You're awake, here I thought you would be out for a few days.” the unnamed bug said as he walked deeper into the room, past Tiso before stopping to stand in front of him.

“You-” Tiso began “You brought me here?” 

The pillbug nods “Yes, on my path to Nailmaster Oro, I spotted you moving up against the cliff face. I couldn't, in good mind leave you to die.” 

Tiso shakes his head “Why though? Many die at the coliseum. Many are thrown to the depths of the cliff after failing. Why choose me to save?” 

“Because you were the first I saw that was alive. Thus you were worth saving” the pillbug said calmly. 

He sat down on the floor in front of Tiso. He sets the cloth bound bundle in front of the injured bug “I can tell you have Questions. I will answer one for you now and the rest after you eat…My name is Quirrel. You may call me what you will but that is my name”

Quirrel undoes the knot in the cloth and opens it, it contained a cooked TikTik and nothing else. “Now eat.” he spoke. Sliding the cloth and its contents over to Tiso.

"I am not just laying here and doing nothing-" Tiso spat, but was soon cut off by the gentle voice of the bug sitting across from him.

"You are unable to lift your shield let alone walk more than a few steps. You will stay sitting. You will eat; or you will die." Quirrel had a smooth tone in how he spoke. As if this wasn't his first time dealing with someone so impulsive. 

Tiso shook his head again "you don't get it. I have to earn-" he was cut off.

"All you will earn is an early death now sit!" that calm composure broke in the pillbug "I did not risk my exo getting you off that cliff to have you die by the same means” he spoke coldly

Tiso was definitely put off by the sudden change in composer. It made him jump a bit.

Quirrel sighs “Please, you are far too injured to walk let alone fight. I ask you do not take the risks I took to save you in vein. I cannot stop you from leaving. Nor will I, but I know that if you didn't stand a chance at full strength in the coliseum, you will stand no chance now.”

Tiso sits there for a moment. The words made him think. The pursuit of glory nearly got him killed. He had felt true fear because of it. He hung his head before speaking again.

“Alright-” he paused “I will stay.” 

Quirrel nods “Good. After you eat we can talk. You may ask me what you would.”

Tiso sighs and reluctantly begins to eat.


	3. Tending Wounds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Tiso finished eating he had questions. None of which get answered.

The smell of mildew hardly made Tiso want to continue eating, quite the opposite. He felt as if he took another bite he might get sick. Once the warrior had his fill he pushed the remnants of the cooked Tik Tik over to the bug who had saved him.

“Not to sound like a grub but I don't think I could stomach another bite-” Tiso said in a snide tone.

Quirrel only picked up the cloth and the food inside before setting it off beside him. He wasn't about to take off his mask it seemed. Tiso had hopped the other bug would take off said mask so he could get a glimpse at the scar that lay beneath. 

Though it seems his hopes had been dashed. Tiso sighs and once more breaks the silence “so- you said I could ask you questions after I had my fill.”

“Yes I did, didn't I?” Quirrel spoke as if he wasn't paying much mind to the warrior that sat across from him.

“You did-” Tiso was swiftly cut off.

“Firstly I have a question for you. What made you think you could face the Colosseum with only a shield? I found no other weapons on you so I assume your plan was what? To throw your shield at them?” Quirrel sounded almost disappointed.

“You really thought a shield less than the size of your chest could defend you? How you survived is a mystery. Maybe that shield actually did stop a fatal blow.” The pill bug continued. 

Tiso looked dismayed, he hadn't had someone confront him on the subject of using his shield as a weapon. Before Tiso could even try to rebuttal, Quirrel continued on his rant.

“Another thing, you want to try again? I suppose you could really call yourself one of those gladiators. They are all fools, risking their lives for glory. All it will give you is an early death. To fight is one thing- to risk it all on some selfish pursuit is another.” Quirrel finally seemed finished.

Tiso avoids the glare he could tell he was receiving- he kept his eyes on the floor between them “I wanted to have a name- to prove I was more than what I was born for. I suppose it was foolish to fight with only a shield but that is my mistake to bare. I don't need some random bug telling me how I should run my life”

“By the way you were running it, you would have been dead rather than alive” Quirrel crossed his arms.

Tiso was taken aback. He huffs and looks away, feeling the chill in Quirrel’s words hit him. “I wouldn't expect you to understand”

“You say that like you know who I am” the pill bug stood and walked to the lantern sitting on the window sill “I am not just a vagabond, I was someone once. Whether or not I am that same someone alludes me right now.” Quirrel brings the lantern to where Tiso was sitting before kneeling in front of the warrior. “I must change your wrappings, the last thing I need is your husk attacking me tonight-”

Again Tiso let out a huff but didn't protest as Quirrel began to tend to the wounds. 

Quirrel had brought over a small roll of bandages, yellowed with age but still effective. 

They remained silent as the pill bug worked, Tiso offering the occasional noise of protest if Quirrel wasn't careful near a cut or if he tied the wrappings too tight. 

Once it was over Quirrel stood again and walked to his space in the room. Where he had first sat. To note, Quirrel had not claimed any of the cloth or blankets for himself.

Tiso felt a small bit of guilt in seeing that but he shook it off. He owed the other insect nothing. Even if he had saved his life- risked his own in the process. Tiso again pushed the feeling of guilt down in his chest.

“I believe we should both sleep. Rest would do us good.” Tiso suggests, his words less angry as they had been.

Quirrel took on a surprised look before nodding “that sounds good.” he lays himself down on the cold stone floor. Seeming to shiver for a moment before settling. 

Tiso lays down as well, facing away from the other as to take his mind off of everything he had been confronted with. No one had ever come to his rescue before. No one had ever wanted him to live. All of this was so new. 

Tiso huddles underneath the blue blanket that he had been given. He soon fell asleep. Dreamless, restless sleep.


	4. Facing Fears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After an almost sleepless night, Tiso gets to think about what he was really doing in that coliseum.

The air hung heavy in the room, the smell of rotting wood and wet cloth fills the atmosphere in the space. The eternally persistent rain seems to be the only sound that can be heard, aside from the occasional sound of either bug turning in their sleep. Tiso lays on the mostly dry cloth that had been bundled underneath him with haste by the pillbug across from him. He had not slept much that night. A few hours at the longest. The constant beating and drumming of the rain had woken him up and kept him up. He seemed to be counting the endless raindrops now. 

It was doing little to stave off his insanity as he sat still. He could be amongst silence, as he has grown to know in his travels. Eerie and Deafening silence was something he found peaceful. Sitting still however was something he just can't do. Weather it be the drum of his digits on his shield or the bouncing of his knee. Laying still, unless he was asleep, we even worse. He felt he could be attacked or taken by surprise. Tiso despised the idea of being weak and vulnerable. In fact he would rather face a horde of husks, unarmed, with one hand tied behind his shell than feel weak. Even if he was faced with a horde, unarmed, and unable to use an arm, he could still always move or pick up something. Anything to fight with.

Right now, however, he was so weak and sore he could hardly lay on his side. His back aches and his side is throbbing. Frankly, despite the vulnerable feeling, he wished he could have stayed laying down for a bit longer.

Of course that wasn't going to last.

Quirrel began to wake up. He let out a gentle sigh as he glanced at the ceiling. It was like he was searching for something for a moment, lost in thought as he figured out where he was. Tiso didn't know anything about Quirrel, only that he had a nail that was too small for his hands and that he seemed a bit irritable about the idea of the coliseum. 

He had no clue why the pillbug took a long look around the room before settling on Tiso. It hits the pillbug, the expression on his face lights up as to show that he remembered. He took a long moment to stare at the warrior before speaking.

“I am quite surprised you aren't asleep at this hour” Quirrel spoke through a yawn.

“One of us had the luxury of not being injured” Tiso snapped.

Quirrel offered an unamused huff before standing. He picked up the nail that he had placed beside him in his sleep, pushing the blade into an impromptu baldric that had been fashioned into a waist belt. Tiso almost laughs at it upon seeing it.

“You have no clue what you're doing. Do you?” Tiso sneered.

Quirrel glanced up at the warrior “what exactly is it that you mean, my friend?”

“That belt you have is made from a baldric- a shoulder belt used to carry a short bladed nail. You however made it into a waist belt. Also, while we are on the subject. Why do you carry such a small nail? You should have one much bigger than that” Tiso spoke with a certain amount of smugness.

“Normally, I would be carrying a nail of a much higher quality and length. Though it now resides beside a lake- along with the past I left behind” his voice sounded as if he was speaking about a late loved one. 

It struck Tiso as odd most definitely. The change in the pillbug was obvious, as if Tiso had hit him in a bad nerve. Normally Tiso would play it off and not care but he felt a strange, forgone feeling. 

Guilt. It stung and made his stomach turn.

Tiso clears his throat, which makes Quirrel look down at the Bug still on the ground.

“Sorry- I had no place to ask” Tiso began. there was a pause, like Tiso planned to continue, though he seemed not to have the words.

“You did. It's a fair observation, for a warrior with no sword you know enough” Quirrel said thoughtfully, the sound of a forming smile in his voice.

Tiso offered a prideful nod “well of course, even if I only have my shield, I still have to know about other weapons. How else will one predict attacks?” 

There was a long pause when suddenly a gentle laugh was heard from the pillbug.

“You might have just made a good knight, to bad the kingdom isn't in need of them.anymore.” Quirrel couldn't contain his laugh, even after he spoke.

Tiso felt a bit patronized but decided to just nod. There was something that was funny, he couldn't see it quite, though he was glad that Quirrel was no longer sad as he was before. 

“I need to go out and gather supplies from the towers. Try to rest while I’m gone or at least if you do try to stand, use the table to help you balance” Quirrel walked to the door and set his hand on the knob.

There was a pause in his movement, in fact he stood still like a body in rigor. The pillbug slowly turns and looks at Tiso.

“I know I laughed but, if you were to receive training I do believe you'd make a good knight. Something to think about.” before Tiso could speak or make a sound, Quirrel was gone.

Tiso lays there silently, after all it wasn't the silence he hated. He hated not being able to move that much. He hated that Quirrel brought him here where he had to listen to the rain.

What he hated most of all was that Quirrel had made a valid point. Though even worse than all of those things combined was the nagging fear he got when he thought back to the coliseum. The fear that God Tamers gaze struck in him. The fear he got when he thought of picking up his shield again and going back to fight. He hated the fear that he felt when he thought of her gaze, even if Tiso couldn't see the God Tamer's eyes. He knew well that she carried not a shred of mercy in her eyes. The stare she had was cold enough to freeze a lake of molten rock.

He still felt frozen by her gaze as he lays there, unable to fight, to move, to think straight.


End file.
